Windy Dreams
by Owaranai Destiny
Summary: AUWhen Fayt Leingod moves to a new place, looking to find a new life, he gets more than he bargains for as a darker destiny from an ageless time awaits him. Pairings not decided yet, rated T to be safe.
1. Acquaintances

Hey all. It's my first one Star Ocean fiction here, and I haven't been writing for almost half a year, so please do leave some constructive criticisms/suggestions/ideas if possible. This is more or less a trial chapter, to say the very least, so I might be making some changes yet.

That being said, on with the story.

Chapter 1

Acquaintance

The breeze came, engulfing the streets in a wave of pleasant energy and comfort, as well as waves of cherry blossom petals from their respective trees on the sidewalks.

He almost smiled from the smooth pressure of the breeze against the skin of his face and closed an eye to prevent any dust from entering while keeping the other open for directional purposes. The hair could wait for its tidying later; it was messy all the time anyway. It was a wonderful indulgence compared to the past few days, where he could not even shoot hoops in peace without having searing rays of heat beat down upon him every minute.

He thrashed those thoughts aside and focused on today. It was a start of a fresh new college term, and he was looking forward to seeing new faces, a new school, and a new place…Even though there were several regrets he left behind in the old place.

_Well, now isn't the time to look back, I suppose…Not after all that. I should be looking forward to my new life here… _He swept the messy bangs in front of his eyes backward and reflexively looked to his left side-a habit he had kept since grade school.

There, across the road, stood a breathtaking sight. It was perhaps one of the greatest luxuries to his eyes nowadays, though he had not been greeted by the sight of such girls except a few he had even bothered to think about.

Her long, silky locks rose with the wind teasingly, as though calling out for the attention of those around her. Long slender fingers went up to her pretty, oval countenance, trying her best to keep her hair down. Bright, big emerald eyes narrowed slightly in mild consternation, probably at the fact that her hair would need more attention than warranted. The slight fringe and bangs around her face seemed only to accentuate her perfectly chiseled features, as did the long-sleeved black uniform she wore did with her body. The pleated skirt reached to what seemed to be the middle of her thighs, while a pair of stockings of the matching color adorned her shapely legs.

He felt as though he would not mind watching her for a long time.

As if on cue, she turned, their eyes meeting. He froze, feeling as guilty as a naughty child who had been caught with one hand in the ever-so forbidden cookie jar. Despite that, he could not tear away from her gaze. It was deep, nothing like those of the typical giggling girls to rather talk about the male leads for an up and coming movie rather than Symbology or politics. There was a profound wisdom in her eyes, yet a teasing light coming from it as well. Whatever it really was, he was stuck for a while staring into her eyes.

And then the spell broke. She broke the gaze without as much a reaction as to his staring and with a swish of her hair, she was gone…and he was left staring after her like an idiot. It took him several seconds to pull out of the stupor, though, and one look at his watch was all he needed to rev up and go.

"Darn it! I'm going to be late!"

* * *

_What a way to make a first impression…_ He ran a hang through his hair sheepishly, earning a few curious looks directed at him. Not all were because of his action, though, as it was normal to take a few seconds more to look at someone who the students did not recognize. 'She's going to be mad at me again for being late…' 

He felt a presence settling itself next to him beside the principal's office, and turned to look, receiving his first shock of his new schooling life.

The girl whom he had seen just across the street was standing right next to him, her eyes widened slightly in surprise as well. She recovered a nanosecond before he could, however, and her cool countenance kicked in again.

"Umm…Hey." He thought to start a conversation with the girl, who radiated an enigmatic aura, though it seemed as though she had hardly heard him…or to be a little more brutal, pointedly ignored him. "Is…Is this your first time late?"

That got a response out of her. The girl's head snapped up, the frown present on her face again and there was such an intense look on her face that he flinched ever so slightly. "I'm never late."

"O-Oh…So do you mind telling me why are you standing outside the principal's office?"

"I could ask the same about you." This time there was a smirk on her face. He could not tell whether he was enjoying this or simply mocking him somehow. Whatever the case, before he could inform her of his 'double purpose visit' to the office, the secretary came out and beckoned for the two of them to enter. The girl swept in without a word, while he followed suit.

"The two new transfer students eh…" The principal spoke without looking up from the pile of documents placed in front of him, sending off the vibes of being too busy to bother about two the two of them.

"Yes, sir. May we know which classes are we being allocated to?" He gave a start, surprised by the girl next to him once again. A sideward glance told him that she had at least one hand on her hips and looked faintly irritated. Obviously she was not used to being treated in such a way…Or it could merely mean she was one of the impatient types.

"Yes, yes. Here are your timetables. I'll be asking someone to show you around soon." The headmaster fumbled two pieces of paper onto the table somehow and literally shoved it at them. "Be at your classrooms a soon as possible. Now, if you would excuse me…"

The girl turned on her heel a little slower than what people would have deemed rude and stepped out of the office. He flustered and followed suit, somehow wanting someone to talk to in this alien environment…Though he would probably get used to it soon enough. Still, it wouldn't hurt to make more friends.

"Wait up!" He exclaimed, half expecting her to continue striding away to her classroom. To his surprise, she stopped and looked at him in a nonchalant manner. "Erm…so…" Suddenly he was at a loss for words, and he struggled to find a topic. "What's…What's with your schedule?"

The girl gave him a strange look, but continued, sparing any other comments she would have thought to voice out. "It's on the fifth floor…5-1. At least that's what the first lesson of Homeroom on my timetable says." She paused for a moment, and though knowing it was probably none of her business, the very least she could do was humor him after his efforts to try to talk to her. "…And yours?"

"Oh, it's…" He looked at his own piece of paper and chuckled sheepishly. "…5-1. It looks like we're going to be classmates."

"Haah…"

"What's your name?"

"Huh?" She was taken slightly aback at the frankness of the guy in front of her. Usually members of the opposite sex who dared to take the trouble to walk up to her and make vain attempts at conversation would stutter and always do the 'weather talk', as she so affectionately named it. His right hand came out, and she blinked.

"Would it be better to do the introduction in class later? Maybe you feel more comfortable talking to more people."

She frowned slightly, took his hand and shook it lightly inclined to ask for his name as well "Maria Traydor…and you?"

He smiled, the name literally dancing on his lips. "Fayt…Fayt Leingod."

* * *

The formal introductions in class later enabled a little more access to her information about her, though it was not particularly much. In fact, the only extra little thing he knew about her was that she was a _Gunslinger_, one or the rarer categories of students here. There were many _Swordsman_ class types around here just like him, so he had a slight idea of how much 'competition' he might be getting around. 

At least it did not seem that he would have trouble fitting in, even if they were for the wrong reasons. He did catch some people whispering and pointing at his hair-a fine azure color-as well as Maria's. She did have hair with a hue almost akin to his. Judging from the expressions from some of the students (especially some of the girls), Fayt was sure that there was no hurtful intent in the finger pointing.

Of course, there were a few sleepyheads whose eyes lit up at the sight of Maria Traydor (not just them, but it seemed to be most of the male populace in the classroom) especially. He could not blame them though; even he had been ogling for a few seconds before being caught.

"Oi…" He heard a soft call from his right. "Don't space out while the teacher's talking. You don't want to get into trouble so quickly, don't you?" He turned and flashed Maria a thankfulsmile, embarrassed, before sitting up straight.

"Thanks."

"Hmph." Was she always that…that unfriendly with others? Fayt propped his hand on the desk and rested his head on it, listening to the ever so uniform opening speech of the homeroom teacher, who introduced herself as Miss Ellen Vonperes. Not that she was boring, of course, but Fayt had other things on his mind, like the game he played last night before barely waking up on time to catch the bus. 'Sophia's going to be really mad this time…Though she cools down pretty quick if I apologize.'

This time, he felt an eraser hit him in the head. He turned, swiveling his head slightly to see who the culprit might be. Save for Maria, there seemed to be no one else who could be accused, but she never struck him as that type of person…

Another projectile struck him, just as he was turning back, but the blue-haired youth could feel it bouncing off from outside…

_…From outside? But that's impossible! No one could possibly throw that high…_ He looked out the window and almost chuckled when he saw a muscular blonde winking at him. Other than Sophia Esteed, his childhood friend who had been studying in Grantier High, Cliff Fittir was another friend whom he expected to see here…Though he was notorious in school (from what he heard from Sophia) for skipping classes and being Insanity Incarnate in the school itself for his practical jokes being able to wreak havoc in classes. Even the discipline committee had trouble keeping him in check sometimes, and Cliff had even said he was proud of it.

Fayt grinned at him. The one on his blonde friend's face mirrored his and he ran off, presumably off to make more mischief. Fayt turned back to his daydreaming…At least the new life here was not as bad as he thought, after all. Throwing a disarming smile at Maria, who raised an eyebrow at him questioningly, Fayt Leingod continued to bask in his daydreams about the last Dungeons & Dragons game he played.

"…And so, let's start our first lesson of the term…"

* * *

Sorry for the abrupt and rather bad ending…I ran out of ideas for the first chapter. Once again, please review if possible as I try to come up with something for the second chapter. The idea of having them in an AU is forming, but not there yet and the introduction to this new world (which I'm trying to formulate in my mind) will come up in the second chapter.Thank you again for your patience in writing this crap. Till then, cheers! 


	2. Academy

Author's note: Back with a new chapter…Though it won't be anything quite exciting, but because of the somewhat rushed pace in the 1st chapter, I'll be doing a few boring explanations here and there. As for pairings…We'll see. Hehe.

**Master and Chief and Arbiter: **Sorry, but I don't even know what's DMC3. The names just popped up in my head and I just wrote them down. You flatter me. It's not even beginning to be a story just yet! I hope I live up to your expectations. As for FaytxMaria…We'll see.

**Miss Nox: **Don't worry. The other mains will come in soon enough. It will be silly to leave them out like that. As I said with the pairings, we'll see.

Before we proceed…(Should have done this in the first chapter but what the hell…)

**Disclaimer: Don't own Star Ocean, any of its characters and Tri-Ace or whatever company involved in its creation, so please don't destroy my bright future with the name of a female, got it?**

Chapter 2

Academy

Fayt Leingod sighed. It was not turning out to be as good a day as he thought it would be. The student who was supposed to guide them around was sick, so someone from their class volunteered-a male student, and it was almost obvious why he would so eagerly stick his hand up, though from the skeptical expressions on some students and the Homeroom teacher herself told him that he would rather be sleeping in a field of daisies than be a volunteer guiding stupid transfer students around.

_Well, his mind probably changed thanks to her…Not that I'm entirely ungrateful, but…_ He sighed. _It's weird being left behind like that._ Fayt was somewhat amused, though, that while walking behind them and being ignored by the guy, it was painfully obvious to see that Maria was simply looking around by herself, observing the landscape and landmarks around her instead of simply listening wholeheartedly to the half-baked descriptions of the various places from the poor, enthusiastic fellow trying so hard to impress. Fayt chuckled; He can't really blame him though…

"…And finally, here's the cafeteria, where students and staff alike go to for their meals and relaxation. That's the end of our tour of the Infidenis Academy." The male youth grinned (it almost seemed smug to Fayt) as he turned to Maria. "Would you mind if I err…eat with you? Considering now that it's our lunch break…"

"No thanks. I'll manage by myself-no, I believe both of us will be able to do well on our own from here on. Isn't that right?" The blue-haired girl corrected herself and turned to Fayt for confirmation, who nodded promptly. She turned back and gave a tiny smile to the student who had hid his slight disappointment quickly. "Thank you very much for your time, Lieber."

"Anytime…Say would it be-" He did not even have time to finish as Maria briskly turned again and walked off towards the counter with a flick of her head, causing her silky locks to swish about in turn, leaving Lieber standing there with a strange look, as Fayt would so willingly call it. He too, made for the same place, but felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Is she, by any chance…?"

Fayt sighed. He had been asked the same question several times already. "We just met today. There's no way we can be twins. Besides, aside from the hair and eye color, we don't look the same, do we?"

"Come to think of it…" the bluenette was about to leave when the same hand stopped him in his tracks again. "Thanks for the information…"

"…Fayt Leingod. Thanks for showing us around." He smiled, although slightly annoyed at having been left out of his little tour and for the fact that their ever so helpful host had forgotten his name.The least he could do was to offer his thanks. He probably would not have had time to go around exploring the school alone, anyway…

"Leingod. Got it. You're welcome." The curt reply was not exactly friendly, but neither could Fayt feel animosity radiating from it. He turned; ready to sate his unreasonably demanding pangs of hunger…

…When someone flicked his forehead painfully, causing him to wince and take a step back. 'Ow! What's the big-' He opened his eyes and froze. _Oh._

"Good afternoon, Fayt Leingod." The reply was stuck somewhere in the abysses of his mind and he smiled nervously. Sophia Esteed, all of a sweet seventeen, beautiful brunette locks and a pair of green eyes filled with a startling innocence glared at him. "Were you late?" The tone she used was dangerous, as though she was an irritated cat, ready to pounce and scratch the life out of someone when rubbed the wrong way. Fayt knew it too well; He had to choose his words carefully (something which he never really did) or he would be bearing the brunt of her fury as usual.

"Err…Good afternoon, Sophia…?"

"Grr…I was almost late waiting for you in the morning! Where the heck did you go?" She placed her hands on her hips huffily, burning two holes in Fayt's head as though it would bring her answers. He responded by laughing nervously. The familiarity of the scenario came back to him and he could feel tension draining away.

"What's so funny, Fayt?"

"Oh, it's nothing. I'm sorry…I really am. I was lost for a little while there and…Never mind." He decided that informing Sophia about his little run-in with a certain blue-haired girl in the morning was not that important to her, though she would probably meet her sooner or later.

As he expected, Sophia's frown turned into a pout as she crossed her arms over her chest. "Oh well…I had it coming anyway, having you as a childhood friend. What was it other than being lost that got you late?"

"Oh, it's nothing…Is the cafeteria fare good?"

The brunette raised an eyebrow, but decided to play along. She did not want to be seen as a busybody, and there are things which she would find out eventually anyway. "It isn't too bad. Have you gotten a tour of the school already?"

_You mean, following two people around like a dog?_ "Yeah, more or less. Let's go meet up with Cliff and some food. I'm hungry."

"You always are." Fayt laughed at her derisive remark even as she punched him in the arm. "Well, Cliff won't be here anyway. I don't think you really knew about his antics, so it's you and me today." She smiled and took his arm as she led him towards the counter.

"Wait…" But before he could stop her, he found himself next to Maria in the queue. She glanced at him, her gaze going from the feminine hand on his arm to the brunette girl beside him and back to Fayt. A ghost of a smirk appeared on her lips, but disappeared soon enough.

"…I see you've wasted no time in making friends." However mild it was, Fayt could sense a small amount of amusement from it. For some reason he was disinclined to agree with her implication.

"No, no. You got it all wrong. She's just a childhood friend-"

"Who's your friend, Fayt?" Maria liked her voice. It reminded her of wind chimes caught in a small pleasant breeze, all of the clarity of her innocence and cheerfulness caught by the ears of those who heard it. She had no doubt that whoever she was; she might certainly be a very nice person to interact with.

"Oh…She's-"

"Maria Traydor, 5th year, class 1. Nice to meet you." That small smile, full of courtesy and civility appeared once again and vanished as quickly as it came. "And you are?"

Sophia hesitated at once. She was not entirely comfortable around strangers, even though they might have sort of connection with her childhood friend. She looked at Fayt hesitantly, who knew fully why she was a little afraid to introduce herself and experience 'that' again.

"I'm sorry. She's a little…shy around people she meets for the first time. Sophia Esteed, 4th year, class 3. A 'Mageia' class student." He stopped, a mischievous glint showing in his eyes. "Loves to sleep, bilge on ice-cream whenever she's unhap-Yeow!" He grimaced as the heel of a certain girl landed on his foot heavily.

Maria raised an eyebrow, but was secretly glad that the mood had somehow lifted, thanks to Fayt. She did not want to make someone feel uneasy, even though she might barely know them at all.

She cleared her throat, sparing Fayt's feet from an inevitable massacre of the Esteed heels of Doom. It took a few tries, but eventually the friends managed to focus their attention on her. "Well…Nice meeting you, Sophia." Then, turning slightly to Fayt, she continued. "You can call me Maria. Most people do anyway." Hoping that he got the hint, she gave a small and awkward wave before making her purchase.

Fayt could only look at her back. _And here I was thinking that we wouldn't be able to get along with each other. Surprises bite me where I least expect them to…_

"Fayt, the queue's waiting…"

"Oh…? Oh! Right, right…" He gave a silly grin to Sophia and covered the gap quickly, hearing a few indignant grunts behind him.

* * *

History was not half as bad as he thought it would be: Dry, boring and sitting with a classroom full of bespectacled people hell-bent on digging up ancient events to be recorded for the future generations as a cure for any possible cases of insomnia. It was the first lesson though, even if Professor Alexander Remington seemed like someone who could keep a student's attention on the subject at hand. 

"Let's see…the next class is…" Fayt opened his file to take a look at the trusty timetable and carelessly spilled the rest of the contents inside.

"Oops…" He bent down to pick them up, when he heard a pair of feet stopping near him. Maria Traydor was soon on one knee, helping him pick up what he dropped.

"You really are bothersome." There was a noticeable hint of irritancy in her tone, though there was no hesitation in her movement as she handed the documents back to Fayt.

"Thanks." He left only that one important piece out. "So…The next class would be-"

"Symbology with Professor Synthia Lightfield." She was fiddling her hair such that it those few irritating locks were behind her ear when she turned and saw Fayt's surprised expression. "What?"

"Well…I didn't really tell you my schedule, did I?"

"Not really…I-I just had a feeling, that's all." Maria hurriedly replied, as though she was trying to hide something. "Come on, let's go. We'll be late." Her hand swept up (and dangerously close to his from his point of view) as she walked briskly down the hallway. Realizing that he was not following, she turned and gave him a glare enough to freeze one or two arteries in his bodystiff."Are you coming?"

"S-Sorry!" Fayt hurried after her and nearly bumped into a burly student coming from another hallway. "Sorry about that-Hey!" the blue-haired youth could feel that someone grabbing him in a stranglehold and giving him a noogie. "What's the big idea?"

"You're the big idea, Fayt! Why didn't you tell me you were coming today? I could have made a welcome party or something for you." The familiar voice caused Fayt to struggle harder. Not that it was painful or anything, but-

"Cliff, let go, damn it! I'm going to be late."

" It's 'cause of your new girlfriend, eh? I'm going to tell Sophia about this!"

Fayt could feel his cheeks getting slightly hotter. "Wha-What the heck are you talking about? We just met today, and what makes you think telling Sophia will do you any good?"

"Hehe…You do forget that she can get somewhat temperamental over such details-" Fayt felt his grip release as Maria walked into view. Puzzled, he looked up to the taller blonde and was amused by the sight of Cliff's jaw literally dropping to the floor, though the expression on his face was more of shock than anything.

"Ah…I just remembered that there's a Herbalogy lecture I need to attend-Gack!" Cliff Fittir the Klausian, all of six foot two choked as he felt his collar being pulled tightly.

"Hello, Cliff. Nice of you to drop by. I didn't know you studied Herbalogy."

He laughed nervously, an act which caused Fayt to look on in amazement as well as amusement. Cliff Fittir, the one man who was deemed as being a masochistic person, was apparently afraid of a girl shorter than him by a head. He just had to watch this. Besides, he did not feel like going to class by himself.

"M-Maria! What fair winds blew you here? I thought you were supposed to be somewhere else!"

"I did inform you of my arrival sometime ago already, idiot. After two years, I still can't believe you are the same idiot I've seen before. Didn't Mirage teach you a thing or two?" She countered lazily, letting go of the collar and dropping him on the floor. "I'm going to need a place to stay."

"Yeah, yeah…I got it. I go ask Mirage help me later after school…Geez, can't you erase that violent streak off? You're gonna scare all the guys away like that…Even someone patient like Fayt-Oof!" His sentence was cut short by a fist in his gut.

"You don't get it, do you?" She sniffed derisively, a smirkfinding its way to herfull lips.Turning to Fayt, who was by now shocked beyond belief withhis mouth hanging open slightly, "Let's go." Like always, she turned imperiously and walked off. The Swordsman recovered as quickly as he could and followed after her, leaving a dazed Pugilist behind lying on the floor in a sorry heap.

"You know the both of them?"

"…More or less. I got to know them when they got into a little fix. It was a little troublesome, but we got out of it somehow." She stopped in front of a door. "Here we are." She made to slide the door open when she felt a hand on her shoulder. "…What?"

"Well…Is Cliff going to be all right? I've never seen him in that much pain before." Despite his best efforts, Fayt simply could not hide his amusement at the thought of the almighty Klausian beaten by a mere punch from a girl. It seemed completely ridiculous somehow.

"…He's got a body tougher than what you think. Don't worry about that blockhead. Let's get in before the Professor's here."

"If you say so." Fayt smiled. The beautiful bluenette never ceased to amaze or surprise him.

* * *

Symbology: The study of the mysterious signs all over the world found in ancient ruins, pattering artifacts, infrastructure, apparel and weapons. It was a subject of history by itself. It was a subject that would bore people to death had they no interest in it. It was also a subject (which Maria observed, to her surprise) that Fayt Leingod seemed to pay the most attention in the classes they had attended together so far. It had even seemed, to her bemusement, that he was actually somewhat ahead of the syllabus. He had answered several questions posed by the Professor perfectly without batting an eyelid…or flipping the brand new course book in front of him. 

She looked at her own course book, already littered with a few notes at the sides of the pages and sighed resignedly. It was not as though she could be excellent at every possible subject, and she could take comfort in the fact that through the History, Bestialogy and Geography lessons they had coincidentally taken together so far, she was well ahead of him.

"You need any help?" He whispered to her over the cheery voice of Professor Lightfield, who had proceeded to explaining what the number of lines on a peculiar symbol represented. "I didn't think the Prof would get started so quickly, so…"

"I'm fine." She replied listlessly, halfway between copying blindly and listening to understand what the Professor was talking about. "I don't need your help." _Or anyone else's, for that matter._

He looked over skeptically at her writings, winced at her frosty glare and backed away. "All right…Just tell me when you need help." He smiled and returned to sketching some random character Maria could only guess was from his figment of imagination. She hated that smile sometimes. It confused her; how could someone who was practically hinted to 'back off' be so persistent just to help? The innocence from his smile just made her feel bad at having told Fayt off as though he was a mere busybody with nothing much to do.

"…All right."

"Huh?"

She glared at him. "I said…I'll tell you when I need h-help. Got it?"

"Y-Yeah." Fayt blinked at her flustered countenance. Was it really so difficult to ask someone for help? Nevertheless, he simply smiled back. "Yeah, I got it."

"Mr. Leingod, would you care to tell us what's so interesting that you need to keep it secret with Miss Traydor?"

He jolted, a deer caught in the headlights. "It's nothing Ma'am! I was just asking her a few questions about what we went through so far."

"Well, you could've raised your hand and queried about it, Leingod."

"Sorry Ma'am." He smiled sheepishly in return and the class turned back their heads to pay attention once more. What he did not know, though, was that a pair of eyes was still upon him, and they were not burning with friendliness and amusement.

"Idiot."

"Hey! I resent that. It wasn't just my fault that we were both pinpointed by Lightfield."

"Hmph." Was her simple reply and Fayt slumped to the other side, frustrated. He hated taking all the blame for others, especially when it was not his fault entirely.

"You're a bright piece of sunshine, I'd say."

"…."

* * *

The rest of the day went by like a breeze, more so probably since it was the first day of the new term, though attempting to talk to his new acquaintance yielded as little results as the amount of clouds in the clear blue sky. It seemed like a hopelessly normal first day, until he overheard two female students talking about the last lesson of the day. 

"Have you heard about the last period?"

"Yeah! It's unusual, though. Usually the Classification comes a little later. Why would they want to rush it?"

"It might be because of the increase in monsters and last year's incident…"

"Yeah, I heard rumors about it. They said it was something like a rebellion or something…"

Fayt had heard enough. He had heard from Cliff (in the infirmary, who was probably still flirting with the young school nurse) that the Classification was something which groups people with similar abilities and preferences together in terms of combat. The Classes included Swordsman, Mageia, Beastspeaker, Pugilist, Spellblade, Mechion and Gunslinger. Aside from that, he was told that once they were integrated into the different classes, they would be attending different lessons depending on the nature of their classes.

"I recalled that the Classification was supposed to happen in the second week, though. Don't know what the rush is about." Was what Cliff had said, and it tallied well with what Fayt had heard. He had not taken to the northern forests yet, so he had no idea how accurate those rumors were. The blue-haired youth did know that he would love to test his skills against the other Swordsmen. Aside from the basketball, Symbology and video games, the one other thing he fully had confidence in was swordsmanship. He had forgotten when the last time he had any real practice was. The Classification could help him with that.

"Fayt!" The teenager of eighteen years turned to face his childhood friend, who had apparently been running to catch up with him. "I've been looking all over for you! Where have you been?" She pouted. Fayt smiled at her actions.

"I was exploring a little bit for myself."

"Then let's go home together, like we always used to."

Fayt scratched his head. "Sorry to disappoint you, Sophia. But you heard of the Classification?"

"Yeah...What about it?"

"Well, it might notbe there on the timetable, but it seems that its today."

"Eh!"

Fayt gave her an apologetic smile. "Sorry, Sophia…Maybe tomorrow?"

She shook her head stubbornly and shrugged. "Well, I guess I can't help it. You'll probably need someone to cheer you on. You won't be able to fight well without that." She smirked at him. Fayt laughed, accepting the statement without another word.

"But honestly, I don't know what the Headmaster is thinking…Classification this early in the year? It's usually done-"

"-In the second week, I know. Cliff informed me of that already." He replied thoughtfully, wondering about the decision himself. "I've overheard some rumors-"

"H-Hello." Fayt turned his attention to the azure-haired girl and was puzzled with her awkward expression, and even more so by the fact that she had actually tried to initiate a conversation.

"Maria." Fayt greeted simply while Sophia looked on in slight apprehension. "Is there anything you want?"

"Actually…" She paused, not liking this at all. There was hardly ever a time she needed to ask a favor of someone, but a little bit more research into the Classification gave her the information that eventually, she would need a group with three more people, each of a different preference of their Class. Considering the fact that she did not know anyone well enough, the only logical thing was to look for those she knew…sort of.

So why did it become so hard and awkward for her to ask a simple question?

"Yes?"

"The answer, of course, lay with Fayt Leingod himself. Despite her cool countenance, Maria felt somewhat bad for giving him the cold shoulder treatment almost throughout the whole day. It was not as though he was similar to the several suitors who tried in vain to arrange a date for a 'friendly meeting after school.'

"W-Well…" She frowned, looking anywhere else except for him. "…There's a group event in the Classification, and I was thinking if you would join in."

'That came out better than I thought.'

"Group event?"

Maria sighed, her awkwardness forgotten for a moment. Why was he so inquisitive? "It's a trial of some sort, pitting one group against another by using their various strengths and abilities to achieve victory. They won't allow people of the same class in one group. We need four people in a group to be actually qualified for the trial."

Fayt blinked. He never heard that one from Cliff. "But how about the others who can't find a group?"

"The groups that participate have a slight advantage when we go on exercises. That is, we probably will have a group to go along with already, rather than look around to form or join one."

"Oh…" After a moment's thought, Fayt grinned. "Sounds good. I'm in. The only problem is with the other two members."

"I think we can solve one half of it with a blockhead."

"You mean Cliff?" He received a stiff nod as confirmation. "That reminds me, would Mirage be in this as well?"

Maria glared at him. "You know, Mirage and Cliff are both Pugilists."

"Oh…Sorry."

"Hmph." Somehow, the conversation allowed her to revert back to her calm and collected self, putting her at greater ease. "I guess we just have to look for another at the Infidenis' Field of Glory."

"The what?"

"It's a place where they hold their competitions, I believe." Maria replied off-handedly, flicking her hair back in place as Fayt nodded.

"That would make sense…But I have one question."

"Yes?"

Fayt laughed embarrassedly. "When's it held?"

Maria let out a frustrated sigh. _And I thought Cliff was the only idiot in my life right now…_

* * *

Gah…Done in a nutshell. The pace of the story's a little slow in this chapter due to some introduction of certain terms as well as this so-called AU (though I admit that the introduction itself was a little slip-shod). Don't worry about the action. I'm planning to add in some things for that in the next chapter as well as a few more of the favorite mains. Till then, dear readers. Please do R & R, and thank you for reading. Cheers! 


	3. Nel

Author's Note: And the story moves on! S-L-O-W-L-Y though, as much as I would like to speed it up. A few light bulbs have been replaced in my head, so I just might not be running out of ink yet (As the Chinese would like to say.) Truth to be told, I've never played the game before, and that alone should entitle me forbidden to write this. All the information I gathered was from the manga, so please do bear with me on this and if it's possible, state what I've written wrongly, just in case. I thank you and apologize again.

**Miss Nox: **Gemity battle? That's a new term to me, but hopefully this chapter won't bore you just yet. The mood might get a little more serious later on, though. I hope my portrayal of Albel isn't too bad in this chapter…

**Master and Chief and Arbiter: **It is respect. I guess I must have been phrasing his actions a little wrongly, and the mood I wanted to create then was a more light-hearted one. Hmm…I thank you very much for your information and perhaps take a few examples out of it.

**Sapphire Prism: **I don't mean to sound like a fan, but I really like how you write your stories, so any criticism from you is welcomed. I've taken more care with the dialogue and grammar, but please do inform me of any more undesirable trends you see in my story. Regarding Maria…I've as much information I could gather from the manga, but little on the game, so I hope you'll forgive me on that. Thanks again. Oh, by the way, it's 'nitpicking'. P

**Disclaimer: Don't own Star Ocean, any of its characters and Tri-Ace or whatever company involved in its creation. I'm not planning to study law so please don't give me an early tutorial about it, alright? **

Chapter 3

Nel

The Field of Glory was as it was implied: A wide expanse of smooth greenery, undiluted by bald patches of sand or loam. It was disparate to that of the fields Fayt had seen in the institutes he had been from. It was, without a doubt, a testimony to why the Infidenis Academy was regarded widely as one of the best in the region.

"The real thing's not being used for our battles." Maria stopped beside Fayt, seemingly sharing the same thought about the grand turf. "At least, that's what I think. It will be pretty tedious to restore every single bit of grass when the Mageias decide to liven up the occasion with a few fireworks."

"Why bother about the little details, Maria?" Cliff had been lagging behind them doing what he did best: Ogling. "But since you're curious, I'll tell you anyway. The Field is mostly used because of its space. In truth, the real battlefield is created using advanced technology. Any kinds of terrain, enemies, and monsters can be created and made to be as real as possible. The best in technology currently-"

"Reality Alternator, a machine developed to create a fabricated reality, something which one could really experience and feel." Fayt spoke in an awed voice. He had no idea that the Academy had such advanced technology within its possession. Noticing the surprised faces of the duo before him, he raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"Well...I didn't think you were that knowledgeable about such technical stuff to begin with." Fayt shrugged noncommittally.

"I get by with a little bit of reading from those tech-savvy magazines once in a while. I don't limit my hobbies to just sports and gaming, you know."

They continued to look at the broad plains, enjoying the scenery a little while more. There was still some time before the event and the four of them sat down in a shaded area to relax a little. He took his place next to Sophia, squeezing in between her and Cliff and made himself comfortable.

"Were the lessons any difficult for you?" Sophia tends to show that side of herself occasionally, especially to Fayt. It came as no surprise to him, though people who knew little of her and even less of him would mistake them for something other than childhood friends.

She was, as usual, toying with her hair, a perpetual habit of hers she had yet to get rid of since the day they met. "Most of them were alright, I suppose…"

"Symbology shouldn't be a problem, right?"

"Yeah…But the Herbalogy and Runology lectures had me slightly lost somewhere, even though it was just the introductory lesson." He let out a groan, to which Sophia responded with a giggle. "What?"

"That's just so like you." Fayt could not see why people would believe that there was only sweetness and innocence in her smile right now, though only someone close to her would know what she really meant.

"Whatever." But he turned and gave her an easy smile all the same. He lazily adopted a lying position, looking up at the clouds. They always fascinated him, for some reason, ever since his childhood fantasy of being able to bounce away or sleep on the clouds was conveniently broken by his father.

_Dad…_The last he saw of him was perhaps three years ago, when he disappeared abruptly after informing them that he was on the brink of 'an amazing discovery'. There were times where Fayt would have been tempted to call his father an idiot and that was probably the time where he came close to doing so. He was surprised by the resigned attitude of his mother, though, especially when he thought she would be much more saddened by his disappearance.

Fayt sighed. It was the same for him as well, somehow. He could barely remember the last time he truly felt any anger towards his father for disappearing on them. Three years suddenly seemed so long ago, and the pain had long receded into the deeper caverns of his mental retreat.

He opened his eyes and was surprised to see someone he least expect bending over him, though she straightened up nonchalantly and looked somewhere off in the distance. He sat up and looked at her. The wind blew and the picture became perfect, with her pleated skirt slightly wavering in the breeze, and a few strands of her silky hair teasing her cheeks, Fayt was sure hardly anyone would deny the fact that it was a sight for most males to behold.

Then she turned around, sensing that someone was looking at her. "What?" Her customary frown was back in place and Fayt broke out of his momentary daydream, blinking rapidly.

"Oh…It's nothing, really. I was just wondering if you have any friends aside from Cliff and Mirage in this academy."

She looked at him hard and for some particular reason, Fayt never failed to flinch in her gaze, even if just a little. He did not entirely like that fact.

It was for a few more moments before her gaze softened and she turned away from him. "I don't have any." And she took a few steps away from the group. What served as a lovely portrait for Fayt now seemed a little forlorn and out of place, yet it would seem as though her solidarity was part of her personality as well, and suddenly Fayt was interested in getting to know more about her.

He felt a big hand on his shoulder. "Don't fret too much about her. She's always been like that ever since the time the both of us met her. It wouldn't make sense to worry about that side of her if she doesn't even show any concern about it herself, would it?"

"I guess so …" Fayt replied absentmindedly, shifting his gaze away from her while Sophia looked on questioningly. "It's nothing." A smile was all he needed to allay any concerns and questions she had on her mind…at least for now.

Once his curiosity was piqued, however, there was no stopping him from wishing to find out more.

---------------

"There seems to be plenty of competitors around." Fayt stated simply. The three of them had changed into their customary battle gear. It did not take long for the Field to be filled up with people, some obviously from different places other than Earth itself. He relished the idea of competition, but there was one thing that puzzled him.

"Are there always that many participants?" He asked Cliff, who was watching the crowd with great interest.

The influx of students for the last few years might be the reason, though. After all, Infidenis owns its reputation to its success." He scratched his chin thoughtfully. "But I've never seen that many people…Perhaps there might be an unofficial test like the last time…"

"Unofficial?" He was only met with a grin.

"You'll see. The only thing left is for the fourth person in our team. I'll just go on ahead and take a look."

"Hey!" Cliff was already whistling and taking off at a slow jog towards the throng. Fayt sighed. If he knew Cliff, he was probably going to ask a female to join them. "Maria…"

"…I know. We should ask around, I suppose." Without the little outburst from the Klausian, Fayt was not sure how long she would be standing there like a statue.

"But where do we start?"

"We?" Fayt looked at Sophia with a small measure of disbelief. "Are you coming along? You know you're not supposed to be on the Field once the trials start."

She stood up daintily and grinned at him. "Well, that doesn't mean I can't help right now, can I?" Looking at his skeptical expression, her cheeks puffed and she put her hands on her hips. "What? I bet I can even find this new teammate of yours before you do!"

Fayt chuckled. He just could not help teasing Sophia all over again. There would always be different reactions, depending on what topic they were talking about. "All right... I guess you can help…But we have to split up. You want to do that in a midst of older students, with no one you know?" A quick shake of the head affirmed his thoughts. "I thought so." He smiled. "Would it be too much trouble to ask you to go alone? Or…"

"I'm coming with you." She walked towards him and put a hand on her right hip. "Three pairs of eyes are better than two." A sideward glance told him that she was all itching to go.

"Oh…Let's go then." He had always thought that the bluenette preferred to do things her way and alone. "Appearances can be deceiving…"

"Yes?"

"Oh! Err, it's nothing. Let's be on our way." Fayt was relieved that he was mumbling, as images of how Cliff was 'taken care of' were still fresh in his mind. He certainly did not want an irritated Maria breathing down his neck.

Before they could even move into the thicker part of the group, though, Fayt felt a tap on his shoulder. "Excuse me, but do you happen to be participating in the trials?"

"Ah…" He turned and came face to face with a pretty girl roughly his age, with a head of smooth, dark auburn hair which reached slightly beyond the collar of her outfit. The sternness on her features almost seemed to mirror that of Maria's. Though she was nowhere near a challenge in height with Fayt, she had a noticeable height advantage over Sophia and Maria.

What really stood out, however, was the fact that there were some cryptic rune tattoos on her arms as far as her gloves allowed others to see. Her outfit served to raise a few eyebrows as well. Black and plain, it would work best with stealthy tasks, though the dull gold lining told Fayt that they were slightly more than just for assignments. Stripes of black and gray lined her scarf, which shoe wounded around her neck. Her belt seemed to be made with the purpose of practicality, however, as the number of pockets indicated while her skirt and torso left little to imagination.

"Thanks, but how did you know we were a group?"

She looked at him strangely. "Aren't there two girls behind you? If you don't have a team to start with, then it's okay." With that, she made to walk off. Fayt panicked momentarily.

"Wait!" One could see a ghost of a smirk showing on her face as she turned slightly. "Please do join us."

"I thought you'd never ask…?"

"Fayt Leingod. The one on my left is Sophia Esteed and the other would be Maria Traydor."

She nodded with a slight smile. "I'm Nel Zelphyr. I don't believe I've seen you around, though."

"That's because-"

"Not you, her." Nel's gaze was upon Sophia. "You're not a 5th year student, are you?" She turned back to Fayt with annoyance upon her features. "What's going on?"

"Well, you see…"

"So that's where you guys were!" The tall blonde who had disappeared into the thick of the crowd came running towards them. "I thought I told you to stay in one place. Where have you been? And while I'm so hard at work, you found yourself a damned harem, Fayt!"

_Hard work? More like chasing skirts…_ Fayt resisted a strong urge to roll his eyes and chose to ignore the last comment. "She's the last team member, Cliff."

"Yeah, yeah…I know. Nel Zelphyr: Runology genius and a deft user of long daggers…and most certainly a dangerous woman." He grinned widely. "It's a pleasure to meet you, my dear. Danger's my middle name. What say we get to know each other better over a little tea after this little test of our abilities?"

Fayt resisted a strong urge to roll his eyes. Some people never change. "Let's find a place to wait till they give the cue for us to get prepared." A horn sounded as if on cue, the sound low and imposing, traveling over the field and stopping all forms of conversation among the would-be participants. "…I guess we can scrap that last sentence."

"Let's go then." Nel swept past Cliff briskly, walking towards the large podium which had materialized in the centre of the field. A sixth year stepped up to the podium called for the participants to make their final preparations. The group followed, hot on the heels of their fourth new member.

As they formed a small wedge at the back of the crowd, Fayt glanced at Sophia, who pouted slightly but complied reluctantly, walking to the small entrance of the Field. He turned back to the centre of attention, but found his mind wandering away at what could possibly await him at the Classification.

No sooner had he done so did he feel a sharp pain in his side.

"Listen…It's the important part."

"What-" A small grunt of pain escaped from his lips as his ribs faced the wrath of Maria's elbow for the second time. She glared at him, and Fayt wisely decided to wise up and listen.

"…Seeing that there's a large number of participants this year, the academy has decided that the individual Classifications would carry on till tomorrow. Of course, depending on how far a participant has advanced, they would be classed accordingly into different groups. The group Classifications will commence tomorrow as well, and there will be half a day of classes tomorrow to accommodate this."

Excited whispers broke out amongst the young throng. Hardly anyone would stay silent at the fact that classes were shortened. The announcer simply waited until silence befell the crowd before she continued.

"…Each participant will be given a small booklet, stating the rules and regulations for each of the Classes. Please look through them whilst waiting for the first trials to start. Please listen attentively to whether your name is being called or not, since this is a random selection for the students. Good luck to all the participants." The female student bowed slightly and walked off the podium-which dematerialized seconds after her exit-briskly, leaving the young participants in a cloud of excited murmuring and noise.

"Do we really need to read these?" Fayt looked at the booklet that had been passed down, flipping through the pages, each of them entailing just a short amount of time to understand. "It's not like the participants won't know about the different classes."

"Sometimes you have people like him, Fayt." Maria pointed brusquely at Cliff, who was actually eagerly sifting through the pages like a toddler who had just received a new picture book. It was all Fayt could do to suppress his laughter. He recovered, though, and looked on as the throng slowly sifted, leaving only several groups standing where they were.

"So what do we do now? It seems that there's still time before the first trials begin…" Fayt felt slightly uncomfortable with the two whom he assumed to be of the 'strong and silent type'. Cliff's constant ogling and occasional reading of his precious booklet did nothing to ease his nerves. Truth to be told, despite his confidence in his abilities with the sword, the blue-haired youth still felt nervous. There was no telling how skilled the students here were compared to those in his previous institute.

"…Are you nervous?" The fact that she was actually trying to start a conversation startled him. Maria had already taken to the soft, carpet-like grass and was seated comfortably.

"N-no, not really…"

"Ah." She looked at his clenched fists and the trickle of sweat at his brow. "I believe you." The tone was a monotonous one with a sole purpose.

"You don't sound like you do."

"….." She turned away innocently, shifting her attention to the group closest to theirs. Fayt's cheeks darkened considerably and hastily turned away, drawing his sword in the process and making a few practice swings. Cliff, having noticed the little tête-à-tête between the two of them stopped whatever he was doing and sauntered over.

"What's so interesting about him?"

Maria spun and faced him. "What do you mean?" Cliff ignored her query, however.

"He's a videogame addict, a bumbling swordsman at best and an ignorant young fellow. The best things about him are probably his videogames and basketball skills. It's a wonder that you've talked to him more than any of those who tried to woo you in the past four years."

Maria simply looked at him and said, "…You're starting to sound more like an old man the more you sprout words from your mouth."

"Wha-"

"Even your habits mirror that of an old lecher. Ogling at females passing by, gambling your Fol away on some useless things…" She smirked. "Don't fall behind the youngsters, Gramps."

"Why you-" But even before she could let him finish, the bluenette turned with a swish of her head and walked off in the opposite direction as her name was called over the P.A system. He unclenched his fist and sighed resignedly. There was no way he could really win an argument against her, and he had not done so ever since meeting the enigmatic young woman.

"Damn it…I just hate it when I lose an argument." The Klausian began to do some shadow punching, his body a stature of restlessness. "Can't they be quick with those trials?"

"Move, worm." A voice, cold enough to bring a chill to Fayt sounded behind him, and he turned around to face a tall man with spiky jet black hair, with part of his hair tied back in two long and slim ponytails. He wore an all-black ensemble, coupled with an obsidian-colored feathered cloak. There were peculiar fair streaks (A/N: Not sure about the color.) on his silky tresses and most of all, he seemed to be exuding an encompassing aura of arrogance, power and enmity.

Fayt immediately took a step back, though the other two simply straightened and stepped forward to greet the newcomer.

"Well, if it isn't Nox." Cliff grinned, though there was nothing friendly about his smile or the sound of him cracking his knuckles as though he was preparing for a fight. Nel stayed silent, but her hand had moved unconsciously to the hilt of her blade.

The man smirked in return. "It seems that you're still alive, somehow. Which hole did you wriggle out from?" Then, as though he just noticed Fayt standing there a moment ago, he turned and looked at him. "And who's this? Is he another one of your countless wriggly friends?"

"Stop it, Albel. We can do the fighting on the trials stage, if you want. This isn't the time and place for getting into petty squabbles." Nel looked evenly at the man in the eye. If the redhead felt any fear at all, she hid it very well. There was no mistaking the meaning behind her cold attitude towards Albel. Undaunted, he simply shrugged and smirked at her.

"You want me to go worm hunting, Zelphyr? That wasn't really nice. After all, I've got better things to do than picking out bait for a new fishing rod. Beside Worm Fittir and you, I don't think there's anyone here strong enough to humor me." The P.A system sounded, saving the three of them from his scathing remarks and he swept past them with a lazy grin. "Later, worms."

"Sorry about that, Fayt." Cliff scratched his head. "He must have startled you there with that attitude. He's always been like this."

"…Who is he?" Fayt asked quietly. He had never felt such an oppressive aura from anyone human before…That is, assuming that this Albel Nox was human.

"You don't even know who he is?" Nel looked at him incredulously. She did not know whether to feel impressed that the male teenager was one of the few who came out of a face-to-face encounter with Albel the Wicked without shriveled guts and weak knees, or pound him over the head for being totally ignorant of the reputation of the black-clad SwordMaster.

"You can't blame him, Nel. He is, after all, new to these area and its histories." Cliff sighed and put his hands into his pockets. "Fayt, Albel Nox hails from Airyglyph. He's the youngest person to be put in charge of its fabled Dragon Riders' task force and the youngest person to be given the title of 'SwordMaster'." He snorted. "Of course, that doesn't justify him being a cold-blooded, sadistic bastard."

Nel gave him a look, but kept silent. No one dared to stand up to Albel Nox, and even the sternest teachers spoke to him with a tone of grudging respect. Most students shunned him, many feared him, but none could deny the fact that he had the skills as well as the confidence to earn their respect.

Fayt could only listen on in slight awe. This Albel Nox seemed to be only slightly older than him. Judging from what Cliff had told him, his skills with the blade would be unfathomable. There was that ominous atmosphere around him wherever he went, but Fayt felt somewhat excited that there was someone strong here. Perhaps he could put his skills to the test against him.

"Don't even think about it." Cliff's voice seared through his thoughts like a flaming arrow flying through thin walls of straw. "You're nowhere near his level…At least since the last time I saw you wield the sword."

"That was last time," he protested. Finding his voice sounding a little too excited, he calmed down. "I've improved, Cliff, even if it meant not being able to spar with people on the same level as I am."

"He's right." Nel cut in, folding her arms across her bosom. "Even though I've never seen you in action, Fayt, I know for one that there is practically no other in this school that can match him…Unless you're talking about Instructor Adray, of course."

Fayt did not bother to ask who Adray was and simply nodded with some reluctance. He might have been over in his head about fighting someone of the caliber. While it was only a first advancement, SwordMasters had experience, skill and instinct developed over years of strenuous training. No mere Swordsman could simply step up to challenge one and expect it to be a simple test of caliber or courage. As much as he was stuck in the world of video games, Fayt knew about some parts of history entailing unfortunate accidents from some duels.

"Attention…Fayt Leingod, No.S0087, please make your way to platform 4 for your first trial duel. I repeat…"

"That's your cue." Cliff grinned widely, a hundred-and-eighty degree reversal of his disposition a few moments ago. "Hurry up and get going. Weren't you all excited about this?"

"…All right. Good luck to the both of you-"

"Wait." Fayt stopped in his tracks and turned to face the female. "Let me see what is it that makes you confident enough to wish to challenge a SwordMaster." She gave him a genuine smile since meeting them for the first time. Granted, she still thought of him as a foolhardy Swordsman sapling who has yet to understand the reality of the differences between a SwordMaster and himself, but she was in their group, whether she liked it or not, and somehow the boy with peculiar cerulean locks interested her. Not in that romantic way, but somehow he seemed to exude a charisma even he did not know of, considering the way he spoke to Cliff Fittir and the other bluenette.

"Thank you, Miss Zelphyr."

"Nel will do. Let's go then."

The first opponent Fayt faced was at least one head taller than him. A daunting figure, the teenager had a mask void of emotion on his face. His meaty right hand rested easily on the pommel of his huge two-handed sword. Fayt felt daunted. How was he going to survive long against a muscle head that towered over him, and (presumably) had greater power than him and had a blade almost as wide as his own girth?

Looking around him, Fayt examined the platform he was standing on. It was a piece of evidence that the Infidenis Academy was ahead of its game in training facilities. The Sky Sentry platforms were used by the Army to patrol the skies ages ago, when wandering monsters were still a threat to the city's peace. Older versions like those were brought to various places and modified to suit the needs of the people who had done so. In this case, it seemed that they were used for dueling purposes.

The blue haired boy scratched his head as he walked up the platform where his opponent had been awaiting him. Considering that the rules indicating that falling off the platform meant losing, this might be harder than he thought. Nevertheless, he gave his opponent a small smile as a greeting and readied himself.

A screen popped up between them as they moved into their starting positions, about more than half a dozen feet between them. Fayt almost stepped back in surprise, but held his ground when he realized that was merely an indication of the countdown before they engaged each other in the duel. He stared intently at the screen…

3…

2…

1…

Fayt's feet propelled him forward as soon as the screen faded but to his astonishment, his opponent was moving almost, if not as fast as he was. His strategy to win by speed might be put on hold this time.

Planting on foot in front of him abruptly, Fayt stopped and swiveled, changing direction at the last moment as the flat of the huge weapon swept past him narrowly. A thrust and a horizontal slash followed. Apparently his opponent must have read his game well, allowing him no time to fight back.

The other reason, of course, might be that he was angered by the fact that Fayt had yet to draw his weapon.

The blue haired Swordsman sidestepped another vicious attempt to knock him flat. Now he was beginning to wonder why he had been so afraid of his opponent. Was it his impressive figure? Was it the big sword that looked as though it could cleave the very platform they were standing on in half? Perhaps all that he had been afraid of was how strong his opponent really was.

Satisfied that his opponent was not one with the ability to observe and break his defense down slowly, Fayt drew his sword. His opponent's eyes lit up, and Fayt knew immediately that the teenager facing him was probably a simpleton, bent on using brute strength and speed to win. Still, it had been a long time since he wielded his weapon against another…

The next attack came as fast as he could think, and his reflexes took over. Tilting his sword slightly, his opponents' blade practically slid off and his thrust went completely wide. Fayt followed up with an uppercut to the jaw and slammed into his opponent, putting some distance between them. The effort he required was huge, however, as he judged his opponent to be at least one and a half times heavier than he was.

"He's pretty good, for someone against that dreadnought…" Nel mused aloud as she watched the battle. "But with that level of skill…"

"He won't even be able to touch a strand of hair on Albel Nox." Cliff continued lazily, earning him a curious look from Nel. "What? Isn't it the truth, or did you want something from me?"

Nel wondered why she had to stand beside one of what she considered to be the greatest morons in the school. Cliff could never pass off as a bully, but his reputation might as well be within that category of people with his skirt-chasing and his pranks. Despite all that, Nel was slightly glad that the blonde would not be on an opposing team against her tomorrow. To underestimate any Klausian because of how he looked or behaved would be inviting Defeat to an afternoon tea session…One that the person might never get out of.

_But what are you going to do now, Fayt Leingod? Your blows would only serve to agitate Gale Stredas. Attacks like that are nothing more than a few needles pricking into his skin. What are you going to do…?_

By now, Fayt's nerves were no longer frayed. He was getting into the flow of the fight, and gradually his senses became more attuned to what was happening around him. He knew there was no chance in hell that two blows like that would bring down his big opponent. His opponent was a little more than a bundle of short fuses now, and though his swings were getting bigger and wider, there was more strength and speed put into each blow.

Thanks to that, though, Fayt's strategy fitted in perfectly.

Though the timings of his swings were erratic, they were easily predictable. Fayt waited, and dashed in at the first opening he saw. The blade whizzed over his head, taking a few strands of azure hair with it. Undaunted, Fayt brought his sword up in a diagonally upward stroke. The heavy blade returned to parry the blow, but it never came. Instead, he released his grip on his weapon slightly and whirred around his opponent's blind spot. With two steps, Fayt artfully swung his blade high and connected with something hard.

His opponent fell without as much a squeak, landing heavily on the platform floor, though not as much as a trickle of blood left his veins. Fayt smiled as the screen popped up once, showing the name of the victor. It still did take more than a normal blow on the back of his neck to knock him out, though. Fayt stepped off the platform amidst a few cheers and the sound of clapping.

"You made it look like you were in some trouble." Cliff greeted him with a wide grin, happy to know that Fayt had not given in to his nerves, like many others before who had faced Gale Stredas. His friend simply raised an eyebrow at him.

"I've been a little rusty with my skills." Fayt sheathed his weapon, which was rather close to the truth. He had to admit that he was a little carried away, fighting an easier opponent…

"Too many small movements."

"What?" Fayt turned around and instantly backed away as he looked at the expressionless Gunslinger in his group. "Ah…Y-You saw that?"

"The changing of direction took too much time. Had you been a second slower, he would probably have gutted you. A blow to the gullet with the flat of the sword or the pommel would have taken him out. The swing would've taken you into two had you made a slight mistake too, and you could've simply circled him immediately instead of making a meaningless feint…" She flicked the locks back from her cheeks and eyes and one could see a hint of an upward curve on her lips."…Show-off."

"But I wasn't…Maria!" His protests fell on deaf ears as he watch Maria turn away nonchalantly and walk off. There was no mistaking the meanings before Cliff's chortling as well as Nel's sigh. Fayt silently moaned his luck. Why did she, of all people, have to come and see?

"I empathize with you, Fayt!" Cliff slapped him on the back, earning him a small gasp of surprise from the latter. "She was rather selfish, eh? Considering the point that she had a small following of male students so far, it's just fair for you to earn your own fan club-"

"Cliff."

"Yes?"

"…Shut up."

Author's Note: Sorry…Couldn't come up with a more original name. It isn't the best of endings again, but I needed an additional chapter for this part. Sorry for the rushed feeling at the end. My ligament injury's been acting up again, and I've hardly had time to spend writing, especially if I'm serving what my country calls National Service (Damn it all… ). Anyway, do leave your reviews behind. I'll try to make more time and put more effort into this…That is, if those army men and the reality of the importance of money don't kill me first. Till then, dear readers!


	4. Meeting

To the reviewers:

**Maxmagnus20019:** I'll try my best with it.

**Master and Chief and Arbiter: **Thank you. I certainly hope this one lives up to expectations as well.

**Miss Nox: **Thanks again. No Albel in this chapter though, but a little more introduction on some familiar characters and interaction between two of them.

**Disclaimer: Don't own Star Ocean, any of its characters and Tri-Ace or whatever company involved in its creation. Maybe I should just copy this disclaimer everything I post a new chapter…**

Chapter 4

Meeting

It could be the start of a very interesting school term with some very interesting personalities. Introductory lessons on the very first day, an unusually early Classification (according to Cliff) and most of all, thanks to that event, no classes on the second day. It was a start most students wanted.

Not Fayt Leingod.

He felt somewhat edgy, as though something or someone was going to spring on him and shout "Surprise!" for some strange reason. He had even brought along his own sword-The trusty double-edged blade which had accompanied him for years. It was somewhat keener than a normal sword, and that alone brought a little more confidence for him to feed on. Despite that, however, he still could not shake off the feeling that someone's eyes were boring into the back of his head.

As he walked, the feeling intensified threefold. It was not something malevolent, but as far as he was concerned, the feeling made him uncomfortable, more so when there was no one there to help him look behind.

After several more yards, he finally plucked up the courage to glance behind. The moment he turned his head, a few squeals were heard, though the whispering seemed to be the most prominent sound yet. Had Cliff been in his position right now, Fayt imagined that he would have been as least rather pleased with himself. Perhaps it was not such a good idea to call Sophia earlier on and told her to go on ahead because he had 'something important to finish.' After that, he was left wondering why she hung up so furiously and did not even bother to answer his calls.

"Are you the center of attention already?" He turned to the left and watched as Cliff casually strolled down the lane towards him. "Damn, I envy you."

"…You're finding this amusing, aren't you?" Fayt frowned. He thrusted his hands into his pocket and looked down. "Not all of this is attention that even you would want, you know."

"I know, but it does give you a little bit of recognition, quite the achievement for a transfer student who hardly knows anyone around." He clapped Fayt lightly on his back. "Just put it this way: At least you won't have to take the trouble of introducing yourself to people you want to meet or happen to meet in the academy. You really have it easy here."

"Yeah right…" Fayt ruffled his blue bangs in a display of disquiet and confusion. It did not really matter to him how famous-or notorious-he would be after his boo-boo with Maria yesterday, but how he had subconsciously showed off a little without really knowing about it disturbed him. Furthermore-

"You're early."

_Speak of the devil…_ Fayt turned to her, but it seemed as though she was bent on ignoring him currently, looking nonchalantly at Cliff. The Klausian seemed to be surprised by her presence as well, judging from his delayed grin.

"Y-Yo! I didn't see you coming, Maria."

"…And a very good morning to you too." She replied mildly, moving past both Cliff and Fayt, leaving the two males somewhat bemused.

Fayt was the first to recover. "That's so much like her, I guess. She isn't much for words, after all…"

Cliff grinned. "She always comes off with that impression, so don't mind her. Anyway, what's with the sword? Are you that lacking in confidence? It's the second round of the trials only, you know."

"It's dangerous to assume that just because I had a weaker opponent yesterday, Cliff. That's why I needed a bit of a booster. At least this sword feels right in my hand." He smiled, patting the pommel of the sword as though it was a beloved pet.

Cliff chuckled. It almost seemed as though the sword would come alive and acknowledge his affection for it, judging from his facial expression. "By the way, where's Sophia? Don't tell me you ditched her."

Fayt stopped almost immediately, a mixed look of fear and realization crossing his features. "…Oh. So that's what I forgot this morning."

"It won't look good on your record as a new student for ditching a girl."

"I know, but I really did forget!" Fayt sighed. "You go on ahead. I'll get to her and meet up with you soon."

Cliff grinned, and sauntered off to the group of girls in front of them, attempting to wow them with his 'irresistible charms', as he had reiterated so many times to the blue-haired boy. He grinned despite himself, and hurried off the find Sophia before the 'gelignite' in her could get any more unstable.

It was still spring, and as Fayt dashed by, he still found himself marveling at how the season seemed to make everything so picturesque despite the knowledge that there was a high possibility that he would be running late. So engrossed was he with the beauty of the season that he failed to see a smaller figure running towards him in the opposite direction.

"Ahhh!" Fayt felt something crashing into him the moment he heard the cry and with a shout of surprise, he stumbled and fell, unable to regain his footing after the impact. "Geez…Do your eyes grow on the back of your head or something?"

"Sorry about that…" Fayt turned to face a girl. She was petite, for one, and her skin seemed rather dark, something which would cause him to dismiss the possibility of it being tanned. Her whitish-pink hair was tired back in two high ponytails, giving her the look of a cute middle school girl, coupled with the school uniform.

Fayt stood up quickly and offered his hand to her. "I didn't see where I was going. Can you stand? Are you injured anywhere?" Even as he asked, though, he could plainly see that the girl had little intention of answering him, but took his hand and stood up in a daze, looking at him in a strange way. Now that he took a good look at the dark-skinned female, Fayt could see that there was an obvious difference in age between them, and yet the uniform she was donning was the same as what Maria had on when he first saw her.

_So she attends the same academy…I wonder what-_ He jolted when the girl hugged him and giggled. "Err…Is there anything wrong?"

"I've found you!"

Fayt scratched his head, his gut feeling stirring uneasily. "…Found me?"

"The man of my dreams!"

* * *

Only Heaven knew what Cliff was thinking apparently, as the first reaction to the students in the classroom was that of shock or surprise when he entered. He waved and grinned, hoping that it would at least hide any embarrassment shown on his face for yet another failed attempt at getting a girl's number and plopped down on his seat unceremoniously.

_Fayt sure is late…Even though the bell hasn't rung, he should be here by now._

As if on cue, a familiar head of azure hair appeared at the doorway. Cliff watched in consternation when it was apparent that his friend was struggling with something.

"Hey, can you let go of me now? Classes are about to start, after all."

"You'll come, won't you?"

"Yeah, don't worry." Cliff could seem him smile at someone from his seat. Apparently the person had been clinging on to him rather tightly, as some of the other students entering the classroom stared specifically in Fayt's direction. When he was finally free to enter, the blue-haired Swordsman let out a sigh.

"Morning." Cliff waved casually.

"…" Fayt looked at him suspiciously for several seconds. "You're enjoying this, aren't you?"

"What are you talking about? I'd never gloat over what appears to be a misfortune to one of my best friends."

Fayt glared at him as best as he could, but the burly blonde simply replied with a grin of perfect innocence. "…Don't laugh when I tell you."

"What do you take me for, a bastard audience? Let's hear it."

"…I was on my way to get back to Sophia, when I bumped into this girl."

"Uh-huh."

"Then she started clinging on to me and-"

"Well done, Fayt! You snagged yourself another babe." Cliff slapped him hard on the back, causing him to gasp. "So what does she look like?"

"She's tanned, with white hair tinted with a dash of pink, purple eyes…"

"Ohh..."

"…And she looks to be about 12 or 13."

Silence greeted him as his friend stared at him incredulously. When he finally did speak up, though, Cliff's voice sounded strained.

"So you're telling me the same person who's been stopping you from entering the classroom is the…brat you're talking about?"

Fayt nodded, and after a short pause, Cliff began to shiver which seemingly escalated into convulsions.

"Hey, are you all right?" Fayt leaned over to see what was happening, only for a red-faced Cliff to burst out into bouts of laughter.

"I-I can't believe it! Just about any girl will do for you, eh?"

"Wha-"

"You damned loli-con you! I can't believe you'd have that kind of a hobby. Looks like I've been wrong about you all this while."

"W-What the hell are you talking about?! She was the one who latched on to me! Don't be so goddamned loud about something that doesn't make sense in the first place, idiot!"

"Too late." Fayt winced and he turned to see everyone currently in the class looking at him in either shock or amusement. To make matters worse, Maria had just returned from the washroom and stood in the doorway with eyes widened in surprise.

"I-It's not what you think!" Fayt frantically tried to defend himself. To his surprise, though, most of his classmates simply laughed or giggled. "Eh?"

"Don't worry, Fayt. We all know Cliff's full of nonsense whenever he's in class, so we hardly bother to believe whatever crap that comes out of his mouth." Fayt turned to face a pretty blonde with inquisitive green eyes. "Welch Vineyard. Pleased to meet you."

"Th-The pleasure is mine." Fayt subconsciously took her outstretched hand and shook it robotically, still somewhat baffled by the turn of events. His misty expression earned him a laugh from his new friend.

"I know you just transferred here, so just to allay your worries, most, if not all of the class here has taken a liking to you."

"They have?" Fayt scratched his head in embarrassment as well as surprise. It's only been two days, and if what Welch says is true…

"Sure they have! Especially the girls." Welch leaned in the whisper in his ear and grinned as she saw his face starting to take on a pink hue. "Oh, it does seem you're a little popular with some of the guys too."

"What? You can't mean…"

She giggled at the panicky expression on his face. "No, no…That wasn't what I meant. What I really meant was that there are those looking for a challenge in swordsmanship and they could be interested in sparring with you. It's all about competition and rivalry when it comes to Swordsmen, apparently."

"I had no idea…" Fayt smiled nervously. Even if those interested in him were not what he thought they were, having people bearing down on you every once in a while could be tiring. Nothing of this sort happened in his previous school, so he had to be prepared.

"And speaking of interest…" Welch leaned in so close to his face that Fayt almost stumbled back. "What is it that's between you and the new girl?"

"Huh?"

Her expression grew thoughtful. "Well, only a couple of people have seen the both of you together outside the principal's office from before. Rumor has it that both of you were talking like good friends…"

Fayt seemingly relaxed and shrugged it off. "I-It's just rumors. Neither of us really knew each other in the first place, but I just talked to her because she was the first person I met in this school."

The girl sighed and straightened. "How boring…I was hoping for something a little more interesting, like perhaps whether the two of you had really met before in your childhood days. It would make such an interesting story!"

"Hahh…"

"It seems like you don't really know much about her." Cliff spoke up as soon as the blonde girl walked off. "Relax, man. It was a joke on my part. Anyone who saw that little commotion at the doorway could tell that you weren't exactly a willing party."

Fayt looked at him suspiciously. "…Alright. What did you mean about not knowing her?"

"See here, Welch Vineyard is one of our top students in mechanics. Apparently she seems to have a thing for technology…But has always been terrible with combat and weaponry. The important thing is she's the president of the news club."

"So that would explain why she was so interested in my relationship with Maria." Fayt muttered. _Strange people all around…I really do have to be careful-_

"Your relationship with whom?" Fayt jumped, and turned to face the said female, her stoic expression somehow unnerving.

Then again, Fayt always felt somewhat uncomfortable around her.

"N-No one?"

"…Okay…_Loli-con_."

Fayt felt his cheeks heat up immediately. "B-But that-it isn't what you think!"

She shrugged, as though she had done nothing wrong in assuming so. "If you say so." With that, she sat down and looked straight ahead, bent on ignoring the boy beside her.

Fayt sighed in frustration. _Some girls are just so hard to figure out…_

* * *

The Field was once again a hive of activity, as soon as the administration matters in Homeroom were over and done with. Fayt was puzzled at the dwindled number of people, though, and thought to inquire about it.

"It's not big of a deal. First of all, the crowd yesterday could be attributed mostly to the number of contestants. Now that the first rounds are over, plenty of participants are already out. The second point would be the fact that there are considerably less supporters."

"Less supporters?"

Welch grinned. "That's right. Having established relationships with their underclassmen, some of the participants here have had supporters from them. It's too bad for them that only we get the day off, considering most of the participants here are from our year."

"Those are some pretty interesting traditions." Fayt observed aloud. He watched as the platforms were being set into place, and the second round went underway. He looked on in wonder, though, as the various stages set for battle seemed to warp and transform every time the same class of opponents went up against each other.

"That is what they call 'maximizing one's potential in the best suited environment'." Fayt turned to see Nel standing just behind him as well as Cliff a little behind her with a curious-looking bruise on his cheek. Between him and Nel's clenched right fist, Fayt knew better than to ask. Instead, he decided to change the subject.

"So when are you going up?" He asked casually, not really expecting an answer from the Runist.

"…In a few moments. After this round, we'll be heading into the third and quarter-final rounds."

"That's pretty fast."

"It's to be expected. Many just simply drop out due to the amount of fatigue they accumulate. Another reason would be they rather place their cards on the team battles, especially if it's to go with practicality more than prestige."

"That would make sense." Fayt stroked his chin thoughtfully, but stopped as the sound of gunshots was heard. "Come to think of it, it's her turn, isn't it?"

"She didn't want us to watch."

Cliff grinned, the expression on his face akin to that of a child thinking of doing something mischievous. "But neither did she say we couldn't. Besides, even if we were to be found out, we have this fella here to help us." He slung an arm over Fayt's shoulder and grinned at him.

"What?!?"

"Don't be so cold, old friend. At least she's more or less familiar with you."

"Familiar?" Fayt looked at him questioningly, not liking the tone Cliff had adopted.

He sighed in mock sadness. "That would mean I'd have to pass the honorable mantle of being the tormented to you. Seems like she found a new plaything in you."

"P-Plaything?!"

The burly blonde continued to smile widely while pushing his friend towards the platform where Maria's duel commenced. "Don't worry about a thing; I'm sure you'll feel right at home once the 'torture' begins." With a final, hard push, Cliff sent Fayt stumbling towards the male-oriented crowd and sped off.

"H-Hey! Wait!" He cried out, but Cliff had already disappeared. He sighed, trying to organize his thoughts. "What am I suppose to do now…?"

"Stay and watch?" Fayt almost jumped three feet into the air and whipped around to face the redhead. "What?"

"Don't just appear behind me like that…"

Nel blinked innocently. "Is there a problem with that?"

"No…Never mind…" _Is it just me, or is everyone whom I've met so far weird…?_ With little choice but to comply, Fayt turned his eyes to the dueling stage.

The environment that materialized was that of a metallic maze, though the center of it all was an open space, presumably the only spot where both Gunslingers could take potshots at each other with less difficulty. Other than that, pillars and walls of various shapes and sizes dotted the terrain, and none giving an easy time for either contestant to get a clean shot at the other. It certainly was a difficult playing ground, and Fayt was pretty sure only the best would be able to minimize the disadvantages to them.

Sweeping his glance across the platform, he could see Maria's face etched with concentration, her lips set in a stern line and her eyes full of vigor. It was the first time he ever saw her in a fight, and somehow she exuded an aura of quiet confidence which he found rather attractive.

_What the hell am I thinking? I'm here to watch her, not get anymore opinions about her!_ He shook his head furiously.

"What's wrong?" Nel asked. Though it was a simple, innocent question, Fayt could still detect the underlying slyness in her tone and he simply straightened up to answer her with a frown.

"Nothing."

"It isn't a crime to stare, you know…Though I'm pretty sure some girls might get offended." Now she was wearing a smile on her face, and an amused one at that. Fayt felt the heat on his face for the second time in a morning and opened his mouth to retort, only to close it again.

"Shut up and watch." He finally returned weakly and turned away from her, determined to ignore any sign of teasing or smart remarks from his female friend. Nel simply shrugged and watch the Gunslinger in action.

Maria was in a state of intense concentration, as Fayt had so aptly put in his thoughts. The terrain was harder than she expected it to be, but judging from how quickly the fights ended yesterday, the committee had perhaps thought that a little challenge would make things more interesting.

Her opponent was a blonde female who, despite her countenance and disposition when they exchanged 'pleasantries' earlier, might be a tough opponent to fight. Looks can be deceiving, after all. She had never bothered to learn her name, though.

Just as the counter on the projected screen reached zero, she sprang into action, un-holstering her gun and firing a couple of warning shots to test how her opponent would react. It was as though she read her movements, and simply moved behind an artificial wall to take cover. Maria was slightly impressed. She had somehow read her movements and moved quickly to null her attack. Just as the bluenette was able to take a look, two bullets zipped by, taking off a few looser strands of her hair. Maria cursed herself for being careless. This wasn't a fight between Swordsmen, where it might take more than one hit to take the opponent down; this was a gunfight, and a single bullet taken to any part of the body might well mean that she would be out of the game. Of course, the Academy would never allow real bullets, just plastic ones. Still, Maria knew they hurt enough to leave bruises over the body if she was not careful enough.

Another bullet clipped the edge of the column she was hiding herself behind, and Maria began to move again, crouching low and rolling over to the next cover. Another two bullets scraped the ground near her, and Maria could almost feel a smile creeping onto her face.

_Judging from the intervals between her firing and the time when she shoots, it would be safe to say that she's no risk taker. A conventional sharpshooter-Takes no chances, attempts to make the most out of their shots and careful. Their best abilities-and the main reason why some of them fail._

Peeking out slightly, Maria's instincts took over. It was all that was needed to bait her opponent. Three more shots rang out and chipped a few more bits of imaginary concrete off the low wall she has hiding behind. She moved, but winced slightly as the third bullet grazed her skin. It would take more than that to stop her, however, as her plan kicked into motion. Because of the fact that her opponent's gun was a standard model, the seventh bullet out would mean that she had to reload, and Maria grabbed the chance immediately.

_Let's finish this._ She fired off a few shots, forcing her adversary to take cover hastily and another two more shots as she circled the cover. By the time she was done, the reloading should have been completed…But what she had were five more bullets-and the element of surprise.

Just as she was about the reach the other end of the wall, Maria sprang out low, and an audible gasp could be heard when her opponent managed to spot her out of the corner of her eye. Her left hand came away from the pistol and grabbed another hidden one, something which only mildly surprised Maria. For Gunslingers, the lack in true melee weapons meant that they had to have a second line of defense. Usually that would mean learning martial arts-or having a spare weapon at hand which is easy to handle and fire at close range.

Maria smiled grimly, and with unmistakable precision, fired two shots. The first bullet numbed her opponent's left hand by hitting her wrist, while the other blew the small revolver away. That gave her time to draw back her right hand and fire, however, and the bluenette winced again as a searing pain came to her left leg. With little hesitation despite her sustained injury, she leapt forward on her right foot and tackled her disgruntled opponent to the ground, subsequently pinning her right arm to the ground with her left hand and pointing her own weapon at her opponent, with the muzzle directly positioned on her forehead. The whole place darkened for a bit, and the familiar surroundings came into view as the darkness lifted.

"Victor: Maria Traydor." was displayed on the screen, earning more groans than cheers. Apparently the person she had dueled with was a popular student among her peers. She sighed and stood up unsteadily, even though the pain in her leg had dulled to nothing more than a throbbing sting, it was nevertheless incapacitating.

"Good fight." Her opponent smiled, and put out her right hand. Maria looked at her in some surprise, but smiled quickly and shook the outstretched hand with her own. "Maria Traydor, is it? Do consider joining the archery club."

She blinked. "Isn't archery different from shooting a gun?"

Her opponent smiled. "It's merged, so don't worry about it. By the way, I'm Esther Vilentras. I'll be looking forward to your initiation." With a casual wave, she walked off the stage and for one of the first times ever, Maria felt an indescribable warmth glowing inside of her, something she had not felt since-

"Maria!" A familiar voice rang out, and the warmth disappeared, only to be replaced by irritation and mild frustration. "Are you all right?"

She attempted to walk to him, but winced as soon as her left foot took a step forward. "…I'm okay…" She said slowly, but contrary to her words, she found herself falling towards her left-

Only to find her fall stopped, specifically by a strong hand on her left shoulder. She looked up in undisguised surprise at Fayt, who had a worried look on his face.

"And you said you were okay. We've seen you getting shot in the leg, and you can hardly stand. Even your leg's shaking." True to his word, Maria felt her left leg quivering slightly now that her adrenaline rush was gone.

"But-"

"No buts. We're going to support you along to the infirmary, whether you like it or not." With that, the other bluenette shifted to her left side and slung her arm over his shoulder, to which she resisted and frowned at.

"You can't just decide everything by yourself! What are you doing here in the first place, anyway?"

Fayt had enough. He glared back at her with as much indignation as he could muster and shot back, "And who told you that you could decide everything by yourself as well? I just came to see how you're doing because I feel like it. Besides…" He looked away and lowered his voice. "Besides, I can't just leave you alone. You're the person I meet in this school after all, and we'll be fighting together as a team later on, anyway." He finished lamely.

Maria's eyes widened further. If he was trying to hide all manner of concern for her, the Swordsman was terrible at doing so. Her heart skipped a beat as soon as the last word left his mouth, but she did not know what to make of it either. Was he just showing concern as a teammate, or perhaps…

"What an idiot…"

Fayt blinked. "Did you say something?"

Maria simply ignored his question and straightened up. "Do you even know where the infirmary is?"

The question seemed to erode the serious expression off of his face almost immediately, as he first turned thoughtful, then sheepish. "I guess I'm not that familiar with this place yet…"

She sighed. "Didn't Lieber show us around in the first place?"

"Sorry."

"Can't be helped, I guess…I'll guide you there."

"Thanks."

"…Am I the one being helped or am I doing the helping here…?" She frowned at him as they moved forward together, to which he responded with a sheepish smile. She did not know why, but it almost seemed as though she was able to talk to him properly. Fayt Leingod was either a simple-minded fool who loved to show off, or he was just simply being an honest and helpful person to a fault.

"You really are a…"

"Huh?"

She allowed herself a small smile, but only to herself. "Never mind."

* * *

By the time Cliff had finished talking with yet another girl, Nel had arrived-Alone.

"Where's Fayt?"

"Oh," The redhead could not help but smirk. "He's with Maria. Seems like she sustained an injury in her match. Apparently Esther was better than I thought."

"The vice-captain of the joint-archery club? Holy crap…Maria's got it tough."

"She won."

Cliff scratched his head. "Well now, that's a surprise."

"You don't seem surprised." Nel stated nonchalantly. It would be good to at least know a little more about one of the people she would be working with in time.

"Not really. I've known her to be pretty strong, and to be able to take care of herself in most situations." Cliff blinked as realization came to him. "You mean she didn't try to decapitate Fayt for being there?"

"She did reprimand him for that, but he countered it."

Cliff's eyes turned as wide as saucers. "Countered? Him…?" He scratched his head, as though it was a most difficult concept to process in his brain. He floundered a bit, and could only come up with one word.

"Wow…"

Nel looked at him incredulously. "Is she really all that terrible?"

"…You don't want to know…" Cliff shivered for good measure. "That aside, what are you doing here? Don't you have a match soon?"

The Runist waved his question aside nonchalantly. "Oh, my opponent forfeited because of previous injuries, and the next one's sick, so she won't be participating."

"I wonder…" Cliff pondered aloud. _Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to have a dangerous babe along in the party, after all. A scary woman is as good as not being a potential target for flirting._

"What?"

"Nothing!" He put up a cheery face. "It's nice to be free for a change."

"Free? You mean to say-"

Cliff whistled a cheery tune as Nel began to follow him. "It was easy stuff. I haven't been meeting any strong opponents for a long time already, anyway."

"No one as strong as me?" A female voice, strong as it is crystal clear rang out, freezing Cliff in his tracks. "I didn't think your ego would have inflated to the extent of thinking in that way."

"M-Mirage." He managed to sputter out weakly. Nel turned to look at the newcomer, who was clad in a navy blue turtleneck with white lining down the zipper in front, with a matching skirt reaching to her mid-thigh to match and a black jacket worn over her outfit. She was positively stunning, as Nel had observed, but not the kind of beauty one would find in a high school prom queen or a supermodel; it was an attractiveness which did nothing to hide the strength she seemed to exude.

"How's life in the academy so far, Cliff? I hope you haven't been making too much trouble." She smiled at Cliff sweetly. From the point of view of onlookers, it was a simple and purely friendly expression, but only the latter knew what would be coming to him if he tried to be funny.

"I-It's not bad…Even my theory studies are improving."

"Is that so? I didn't know you could do that while out playing the fool with the lecturers." There was no mistaking the glint in her eyes now. Even Nel could see that she was rather annoyed by the male blonde Pugilist and could barely suppress a grin from spreading out on her face. It would be fun watching the gung-ho Cliff getting disciplined by a woman, of all people.

"I guess our last duel didn't leave a good impression on you." She continued, cracking her knuckles threateningly. Beads of sweat could now be seen on Cliff's face as he laughed nervously. "You want another go at it? I've got lots of time, anyway."

"H-Haven't you been busy with work, Mirage?"

She shrugged. "Took the day off…and I intend to enjoy it as much as I can."

"T-Then why not talk to the students here?" Cliff smiled widely and turned to push Nel in front of him. "I believe some of them might need your advice on the theoretical studies, after all."

A surprised Nel turned and glared at him, to which Cliff simply replied with an expression of begging. The Runist sighed. "You owe me one."

A quick nod was all she got from him as he sauntered off quickly. As soon as he was out of earshot, Nel grinned and turned to Mirage, who looked none too amused with the turn of events.

"Hello there. I'm Nel Zelphyr. What's your relationship with him?"

"It's a long story, Nel…"

Author's Note: I believe I might have disappointed several people again with this sort of ending, though it's more of a 'new meetings and interaction between characters' chapter. Haven't been in the best of moods lately, and feeling rather tired nowadays. Still, I'll keep it up for as long as I draw breath. Thanks to all who read and especially to those who review it as well. Till then!


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